Tag-fastener



J. R. JOHNSON.

TAG FASTENER.

No. 564,487. Patented July 21; 1896.

m: NORRIS Pu'sns ca, momumo; msmuoi-au. u, 1;:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JULIUS R. JOHNSON, OF ELMIRA, NEl/V YORK.

TAG-FASTEN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 564,487, dated July 21,1896.

Application filed February 17 1896. Serial No. 579,484. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JULIUS R. JOHNSON,

a citizen of the United States, residing at El:

mira, in the county of Ohemung and State of New York, have invented anew and useful Tag-Fastener, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in tag-fasteners in which one j awpasses through a slot or opening in the other so that the jaws may beforced apart by pressing the two parts, back of their intersection,between the thumb and finger; and the objects of my improvement are,first, to provide a fastener made from one piece of stiff sheet metalthat shall be strong and durable; second, to so fashion the teeth orclaws upon the jaws of the fastener that they shall take strong holdupon the cloth, in order that the fastener may only be removed when thejaws are pressed apart; and third, to provide the fastener with a ringfrom which the tag may be readily removed when itbecomes necessary tochange or renew it. I attain these objects by the construction shown inthe accompanying draw ings, in which- Figure 1 is a top View of thefastener with a tag attached. Fig. 2 is an end view showing the relativeposition of the teeth. Fig. 3 is a side view showing the fastener andring in closed position. Fig. 4 is a side view showing fastener and ringin open position, and Figs. 5 and 6 are top and side views showing amodification in the arrangement of the teeth.

Similar letters refer to similar parts thro ughout the several views.

A is the fastener, B the ring, and O the tag.

The fastener A is made preferably of springbrass and is stamped out inone piece from the sheet metal. The part a is left straight, theremaining portion of the strip of metal being bent around at b, forwardat c, upward at d through the slot e in the part a, and finally forwardat f to form with the corresponding portion of part a the jaws of thefastener. The part a is broadened where it is slotted in order that theslot may be of sufficient length across it to permit the jaw f to bepushed through at full width. The slot is also narrow, its width beingonly such as will allow for the necessary end play in part d as the jawsare opened and closed. The jaw portionsare stamped out with V-shapedprojections, which are afterward bent back and sharpened to form barbedteeth. The jaw f is shorter and narrower than the jaw portion of thepart a and is provided with two barbed teeth, which come between and alittle toward the rear of the two barbed teeth on the part a, as shown,when the jaws are pressed together. As the end of jaw f comes against a.between and toward the rear of the teeth thereon, it presses the fabricdown upon these teeth in a most effective manner. A piece of rather hardrubber is placed between the parts a and c at the bend b, and is held inplace by the tag-ring, which passes through it and corresponding holesin a and c. This rubber piece adds stiffness to the spring of the metal,and also prevents the parts a and c from being jammed together at thebend b. WVhere the metal is stiff enough, I may use hard wood or othersuitable material for the piece '6, in which case it serves to keep thebend b in shape, or I may do away with this piece altogether. I prefer,how ever, to use apiece of rather hard rubber, for the reason alreadyset forth.

The construction of the ring B is clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4. It ismade of springwire, one end of which is passed through the holes in thefastener and stiifening-pieoe,bent

downward around the other end, then upward, and finally bent over toform a hook j about ona line with the part a. The other end is bentaround to form the ring which holds the tag, and has its extremity 7cbent upward, as shown, and adapted to be engaged by the hook alreadydescribed.

In operation the tag is slipped over the free end is of the ring B, thisend is snapped into the hook j, and the tag is then securely held uponthe ring. The parts a and c are pressed toward each other between thethumb and finger, which throws the jaws apart, as shown in Fig. 4. Thecloth is inserted between the jaws and they are allowed to cometogether. The jaw f being shorter than the other jaw and having itsteeth in position to come in between the teeth upon the other jaw, thecloth is pressed into these lower teeth and a slight pull backward willfirmly fasten the barbs into the cloth. The fastener is removed bypressing the jaws apart, at the same time pushing the fastener slightlyforward to release the barbs.

\Vhile my fastener would work well on single thicknesses of cloth ifthere were no teeth on the jaw f, I prefer to provide both jaws withteeth, as it is frequently necessary to at tach the fastener to two ormore thicknesses, and by this construction the upper and lower 1a yersare firmly gripped by both jaws.

In Figs. 5 and 6 I have shown a modification in which jaw f has but onetooth, which comes down between the teeth on the lower jaw, as shown,pressing the cloth well into said teeth.

I am aware that fasteners for various purposes have been made in whichone jaw is bent through a slot in the other, also that the jaws of suchfasteners have been provided with claws and serrated teeth, and I donot, therefore, claim these things broadly.

hat I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1.. In combination, a tagfastener stamped out of one piece of sheetmetal and bent into shape substantially as described, a stiffening-piecein the bight of the fastener, and a ring, to which the tag is attached,passed through corresponding holes in the fastener and stiffening-pieceto hold the latter in place.

2. In combination, a tag-fastener, stamped out of one piece of sheetmetal and bent into shape substantially as described, a stiffening-piecein the bight of the fastener, a wire passed through corresponding holesin the fastener and stiffening-piece, one end of the wire being bent outand around to form a hook and the other end being bent down around thebight of the fastener, around the first end and then up and turned overto form a catch for the end of the hook.

3. A tag-fastener of sheet metal bent into the form described, one ofits jaws being shorter than the other and provided with barbed teeth solocated as to press in between like teeth upon the longer jaw, astiffeningpiece of rather hard rubber in the bight of the fastener andheld in place by the tag-rin g which passes through corresponding holesin the fastener and stilfening-piece, all combined and arrangedsubstantially as shown and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have afiixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

JULIUS R. JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

A. S. DIVEN, HoLLIs H. MILLS.

